There are many different kinds of computers in use today. The term “computer system” will be used herein to refer generally to any device or combination of devices that is capable of processing information to produce a desired result. Some examples of computer systems include personal computers, hand-held computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), servers, mainframes, supercomputers, minicomputers, workstations, microcomputers, microcontrollers, and the like.
“Imaging,” as the term is used herein, refers to one or more of the processes involved in the display and/or printing of graphics and/or text. The term “imaging device,” as used herein, refers to any electronic device that provides functionality related to imaging. Some examples of imaging devices include printers, copiers, scanners, facsimile devices, document servers, image servers, electronic whiteboards, digital cameras, digital projection systems, medical imaging devices, and so forth.
For various reasons, an imaging device may be logically connected to (i.e., placed in electronic communication with) one or more computer systems, which may be referred to as host computer systems (or simply as hosts). For example, printers are sometimes connected to a network of computer systems. This allows the users of the various computer systems on the network to use the printer.
Where an imaging device is logically connected to one or more host computer systems, the imaging device may be configured as a managed device. In particular, an imaging device may be placed in electronic communication with a device server, which manages the imaging device. Alternatively, an imaging device may be configured for non-managed access. For example, an imaging device may be placed in electronic communication with one or more other hosts in accordance with a peer-to-peer architecture.
From time to time, an imaging device may receive one or more jobs from a host. A job is a specified amount of processing that is performed as a unit by an imaging device. For example, a print job is a single document or a set of documents that is submitted to a printer for printing.
To facilitate communication between a host and an imaging device, the host may include a driver for the imaging device. The driver for a particular imaging device allows applications on the host to be able to communicate with the imaging device without knowing specific details about the imaging device's hardware and internal language.
An imaging device typically includes firmware. From time to time, the firmware within an imaging device may be upgraded. When this occurs, the host(s) that are connected to the imaging device may not be able to utilize the new features provided by the firmware upgrade without a corresponding upgrade to their imaging device drivers.
Unfortunately, known systems and methods for updating imaging device drivers on host computer systems suffer from various drawbacks. Accordingly, benefits may be realized by improved systems and methods for updating imaging device drivers on host computer systems. Some exemplary systems and methods for updating imaging device drivers on host computer systems are described herein.